Proud Mom Moment (Sorry, this part is totally indulgent):
Sydspigs and Big sister have done a wonderful job with our guinea pigs. They came up with their own system of who is in charge of sweeping the cage and making the salad each morning before school (we have a menu posted on the fridge). Big sister checks the pellet, hay and water levels every night before she goes to bed. It's a great stall tactic, but I let it go. The rest of the guinea pig's care is done as a team. All in all I'm proud of the system, no one is overwhelmed and it all gets done willingly.

News from Mumble & Michaela:
These two are doing great! They are getting along more and more each passing week and we’ve been able to put igloos back in the cage and there have been no fights over whose is whose. I do notice some defensive pee sprays some weeks during the weekly cleaning, but I’m guessing those are hormone related.

Notice how Mumble is letting Michaela use the purple igloo:Let's not talk about who has serious everything-must-match issues and needed to buy a pink igloo(me).

Role reversal:
We’ve had a complete role reversal happen this past week with Pumpkin and Spice and I need some input. For as long as we’ve had them, Spice has been the dominant one. He has been the chaser, rumble strutter and hard for anyone except Big sister to catch. Even our kindergartener would stop by the cage to tell Spice to “stop chasing him!” and “You should be nice to your brother!” This past Monday I decided they needed a bath. Their grease glands were in need of some attention and there was an “air” about them (granted the effects of a bath on boar stank proved to be fleeting). Now ever since Monday, Pumpkin has been a pain! He’s been chasing Spice around with the clear intent of mounting and Spice has taken to hanging out in the litter pan for safety. He’s also much easier to catch. What is going on? Did the bath do this? Could Spice be getting sick? He hasn’t lost any weight and is still eating. Is Pumpkin just growing up? Help! I liked it better when Spice was in charge: he never tried to mount Pumpkin!

Thanks ! I did make the cuddle cups. I make all their tunnels and cuddle cups. It's turned into quite an obsession for me. The fleece has to match the cuddle cups which must match the tunnel, and so on.

I'm glad the girl's contentment comes shining through. They both deserve to be happy and content! I was watching them last night and heard some purring type sounds between them. It made my heart glad.

A quick question: Both girls have recurring foot spurs. I keep an eye on them, but is there anything I can put on it to soften them up?

Thank you for your kind words. :) I'm not going to mention all the assorted people (my parents included) that thought we were odd for having a birthday party for Pumpkin and Spice. I just knew GL would be much more understanding!

We have some big grown up boars around here! They have been loving the fresh greens from the garden. It appears I may have to upsize my cuddle cup pattern.

Spice looking a bit squished.

Pumpkin showing off the other way to use a tunnel.

Mumble continues to love hay. She has two years of having none to make up for I guess.

Michaela, hiding in a tunnel.

I have been noticing a new dynamic in the girls' cage over the past several months. There is impressive amounts of pee spray along the sides of the cage every 3-4 weeks and Michaela can do nothing right at roughly the same time frame. Mumble will see Michaela snoozing peacefully, decides that she wants whatever Michaela has, and trots over and makes Michaela move. Michaela handles it well and just relocates (generally a few times) and lets Mumble be. Rarely does Michaela stand up to Mumble. I'm thinking this is a hormonal issue with Mumble? Does this ring any warning bells for anyone?

I have no suggestions on the hormonal issues but Michaela sure is a cutie. I love her little feetsies. I was wondering how she has adjusted. Is she skittish because of her earlier life as a lab pig or is she just like all other guinea pigs?

Catie Cavy: It has been a true joy to watch Michaela settle in at our house. She loves tunnels and cuddle cups! She's been seen popcorning with Mumble every once in a while. My absolute favorite is when she flattens out, closes her eyes and dozes off. I keep meaning to take a picture when she does, but tend to just sit and watch her instead. :) I think the best thing we did was not using the pigloos or anything enclosed that would start fights. The fleece car wash/lair was probably the smartest thing we did for her; it's the perfect blend of security for her and interaction with us.

That being said, she is still not as relaxed as our others, but we're getting there!

*This thread probably should be in Chronicles if some one wants to move it. It has somehow turned into a diary/journal of sorts.*

We have someone new living with Mumble & Michaela! Meet Peanut:

Peanut is a 8 month old sow who came from a family friend whose daughter was ready to give up her 4H project. I was very hesitant to try another sow after our fun with Mumble and Michaela (read earlier in this thread for that fun), but decided to give it a try.

We did a full quarantine. We found her to be a fun bundle of fur! After the quarantine we moved her cage next to M&M's cage for 24 hours. We set aside the better part of a Saturday for the introductions and sat back to see what we had gotten ourselves into. I think we had a fairly typical introduction (warning nips, pee spray, mounting, sniffing, teeth chattering, fun stuff). Mumble let it be know early that she was the Queen with a warning nip when Peanut tried mounting her and Peanut left her alone after that. Michaela was another story, Peanut tried repeatedly to mount Michaela, but Michaela was not interested in loosing her second in command status! I was so pleased to see Michaela stand up for herself! As it stands now, Peanut is third in line, but don't feel too bad for her as she definitely keeps the other two moving!

Happily eating together:

A slightly modified cage (we're still working out how to expand it more):

Disclaimer: I filled the hay rack right after taking the picture and removed the salad plate. Some days it seems all I do is fill hay racks!